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Last weekend I had an amazing trip to New York! Deb Ross (who organizes the 90-Second Newbery in Rochester, NY) and her daughter Ella took me out to see the Broadway show of Be More Chill. I got to have dinner with my friend Charlotte and her family who have been supporting the film festival from the beginning. I spoke at some schools and made some new friends. And I did screenings of the 90-Second Newbery Film Festival at the New York Public Library and the Brooklyn Public Library!

These screenings were humdingers! Unfortunately I don’t have any usable video of the opening skits (if you want to see what it looked like in other cities, we got some good footage in Minneapolis), but above you can see me being confronted by Hannah, the Sergeant-At-Arms of the High Supreme Newbery Council, in our opening skit in Brooklyn. The same role was played by Violet for the New York Public Library screening—there she is below, with me and my co-host for the NYPL screening, Newbery Honor winner Rita Williams-Garcia.

I was particularly excited to work with Rita Williams-Garcia (One Crazy Summer) as my co-host at the New York Public Library, and Torrey Maldonado (Tight) at the Brooklyn Public Library. Rita was actually special guest for the All-Star 90-Second Newbery when it was at the Symphony Space back in 2012, and Torrey has been my co-host in years past and he always kills it.

Here are Torrey and Rita and me with the filmmakers onstage after each of our events:

So much talent on those stages! Let’s take a look at the New York videos we featured one by one.

The aforementioned Violet and her friend Ocean have been making great stop-motion 90-Second Newberys for years. They created this Lego stop-motion movie of Jeanne Birdsall’s book The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy. The only problem? Uh, The Penderwicks didn’t win a Newbery! But it did win a National Book Award for Young People’s Literature. Good enough for me!

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (complete review here), “Fantastically elaborate stop-motion . .. the animation was smooth and fluid, the cinematography well-framed, the editing brisk and artful. I loved the big, impressive sets, especially the interiors of the houses . . . My favorite part was when the sisters build up the stairs to get Jeffrey out of his bedroom window, and he comes shimmying down on the rope . . . Entertaining and faithful to the book!”

Madeleine and Ellie came all the way from Lancaster, PA to attend the NYPL screening. Here’s their great movie based on Louis Sachar’s 1999 Medal Winner Holes:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (complete review here), “A fun, stylish retelling of the story! I love how it begins and ends with the two narrators relaxing by a cozy fire in their robes, sipping tea or coffee or something, telling the story of Stanley Yelnats in a vaguely aristocratic tone . . . This was fun to watch, inventive, and resourceful—I’m impressed you were able to tell so much of this story (which, after all, has a large number of characters) with such a small cast!”

Here I am facing off against the fierce and dangerous Madeleine and Ellie after the show:

We received a lot of great submissions from the New York Public Library’s Enrichment Zones. For instance, here is Yamilet, Ester, David, Sophia, and Ehye of the Inwood Enrichment Zones doing the “Garden” vignette from Arnold Lobel’s 1973 Honor Book Frog and Toad Together:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (complete review here), “Well-drawn backgrounds, beautiful paper puppets, and informative subtitles keep this adaptation of ‘The Garden’ fun to watch and easy to follow! The ever-changing music was a nice touch too, constantly altering to fit the development of the story . . . Fun, artistic, and true to the book!”

We received lots more movies from the NYPL’s Enrichment Zones—too many to feature in one post! You can see them all here.

Mohana Buckley has been submitting 90-Second Newbery movies for seven years, almost since the very beginning of the 90-Second Newbery. And Mohana’s videos are almost always based some extremely adventurous, out-there concept. Check out her movie this year of Eleanor Estes’ 1952 Newbery Medal Winner Ginger Pye:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), here the original story is “translated into Polish, Hebrew, Chinese, Spanish, Hindi, Arabic, Portugese, Bengali, Russian, Japanese, and Punjabi using Google Translate and then translated back into English . . . complemented nicely by the rapid-fire deployment of animated clip art . . . Inventive, weird, and satisfying!

The day before the Brooklyn screening, I was lucky enough to get to visit St. Ann’s School in Brooklyn. That school submitted two amazing versions of Eugene Yelchin’s 2012 Honor Book Breaking Stalin’s Nose. Here’s one by Luca, Sonia, Matteo, Louise, Leo, Lily, Will, Joe, Margot, Ellie, Renn, May, Allison, and Kiran:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (complete review here), “The black-and-white cinematography throughout gave the movie an appropriately old-fashioned historical feel. I liked the careful attention to the sets (the ominous black walls! the portrait of the Stalin the background!) and the voiceover carried the story forward efficiently and with verve . . . The disembodied nose of Stalin, complete with glases and little tuft of hair on top, was a masterstroke . . . This was great!”

Here’s another movie of the same book, also from St. Ann’s, by Braden, Clover, Ginger, Hannah, May, Renn, Rhea, Zoya, and Zeeshan:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (complete review here), “Ingenious and elaborate! This movie pulls out all the stops in making the Russia setting come alive: the Russian-y music that played through the whole thing, the authentic-looking Russian-language signs and text in Cyrillic throughout . . . but of course the big stroke of genius is having Stalin’s nose itself be the narrator, in a surreal puppet show in which it explains the events of the story in rhyming verse . . . Delightful, creative, and fun to watch!”

Ilsa Waldron, Mia La Rosa, and Erin Serpa (with the help of their cinematographer Lola La Rosa) from Queens made this movie of Kate DiCamillo’s 2001 Honor Book Because of Winn-Dixie:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (complete review here), “I loved the passion, energy, and craft that went into this movie . . . The cinematography was resourceful and the editing was brisk, keeping the story moving clearly and quickly. But my favorite thing about this movie was the acting! The librarian’s over-the-top freakout when she thinks Winn-Dixie is a bear, or the way Gloria Dump talks (“Ain’t that a terrible last name? DUMP!”) or how Opal’s big emotions of rage and joy and loneliness and impatience are bubbling under every scene . . . Wonderfully done!”

Young filmmakers from the Clarendon branch of the Brooklyn Public Library made this inventive version of Madeleine L’Engle’s 1963 Medal Winner A Wrinkle in Time by retelling the story using a bunch of anime clips:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (complete review here), “What a brilliant, deranged, sounds-like-it-shouldn’t-work-but-totally-does idea to retell the story of A Wrinkle in Time totally in redubbed Naruto anime clips! The concept was deliciously original, the new voiceovers were expressive and engaging, the clips themselves were cleverly chosen to visually tell the story, and to my surprise, by the end of this movie most of the story of the book really was conveyed! An entertaining, creative, original way to make a movie.”

We also featured this movie of Sid Fleischman’s 1987 Medal Winner The Whipping Boy by kids from the Foote School in New Haven, CT:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (complete review here), “The ‘prince’ was amusingly bratty and the whipping boy was funny (‘Finally! I won’t get whipped!’). I liked the whipping boy’s weirdly small bedroom, and it was fun to watch the friendship develop between the whipping boy and the prince. Good editing and concise script too!”

We actually got quite a few movies from the Foote School! If you want to see a bunch more great 90-Second Newberys, here they are.

And those are the movies of the New York Public Library and Brooklyn Public Library screenings for 2019! Thanks so much to the folks at the libraries who helped us set this all up, especially Brandon Graham and Paquita Campoverde of the Brooklyn Public Library and Amber Moller, Beth Dukes, Tali Stolzenberg-Myers, and Emily Krell at the New York Public Library. Here are the final montages that we showed at the screenings. First, at the Brooklyn Public Library:

And here’s the final montage we showed at the New York Public Library:

It’s never too early to start making your movies for next year’s screening! You can turn them in anytime! Complete information about the 90-Second Newbery Film Festival here.

Please donate to the 90-Second Newbery Film Festival! It’s tax-deductible. Our fiscal sponsor is Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization.

Do you like the 90-Second Newbery Film Festival? Please consider donating to keep us going! It’s tax-deductible! Our fiscal sponsor is Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization.

It’s one of my favorite shows of the year! Last week the 90-Second Newbery Film Festival stomped its way through Tacoma, Washington with a crowded screening at their historic Blue Mouse Theatre. We got so many great movies from Tacoma this year, and the show was a dream! That’s all due to the hard work of the Tacoma Public Library’s most valuable player, Sara Sunshine Holloway:

And almost every time I’ve done the film festival in Tacoma, it’s been with the hilarious and talented Doug Mackey, who always brings his great energy to every performance. I love working with this guy.

Special thanks to Ellaina, who helped with the opening skit as the Sergeant-at-Arms of the HIGH NEWBERY COUNCIL! Unfortunately, the camera that we had recording the opening skit was on the fritz, so the footage was unusable, but here’s Ellaina and me, plus a look at when the heads started exploding during the skit:

Special thanks also to John Hargis and Isaac who handled the lights and all the transitions in the tech booth! And of course thanks to all the great filmmakers who came out in force for the event:

Let’s look at the Tacoma-made movies from this year! There was an impressive batch, from many different schools and families and organizations! For instance, here’s Matt de la Pena’s 2016 Medal Winner Last Stop on Market Street as made by Avery and Nicolas of the Tukwila Library (with special thanks to Reel Grrrls):

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “The elaborate cut-paper people, buildings, trees, and even animals were expertly crafted and beautiful to look at . . . The voiceover acting was expressive, sensitive, and true to the gentle spirit of the book . . . That kind of craftsmanship makes the whole thing seem more vivid and real!”

Fletch and Otto of Tacoma made this charming movie of the “Cookies” vignette from Arnold Lobel’s 1973 Honor Book Frog and Toad Together:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “Charming, beautifully shot and edited, and true to the book! This was a delightful Frog and an adorable Toad. I loved the earnest, patient way Toad explains to Frog how the cookies could be reached, and Frog’s repeated roars of frustration felt real! . . . This movie looked great, with sharp camera work and careful editing that told the story clearly and amusingly.”

Nigel and Simone made this movie of Jean Craighead George’s 1960 Honor Book My Side of the Mountain, telling this survival story to the tune of Gloria Gaynor’s 1970s disco hit “I Will Survive”:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “I appreciated the use of real animals and outdoor locations to make the story feel authentic . . . There was great slapstick visual comedy in how the librarian kept stacking more and more books in Sam’s hands, in the end just hurling them at him, until he loses his grip on all the books and they go tumbling! . . . This was super entertaining.”

Every year, Mr. Johnson’s 5th Grade at the Grant Center for Expressive Arts turns in some amazing movies, many of which I show nationally. For instance, check out this version of Sterling North’s 1964 Honor Book Rascal: A Memoir of a Better Era, about a boy and his raccoon:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “Between the old-time piano background music, the old-fashioned clothes, and the breakneck-speed narrative, this movie is super-enjoyable to watch from start to finish. The cinematography and editing were crisp and assured: I especially liked the comical jump cut when the extravagantly-mustached father slurps down his coffee and says, ‘Yup!’ The deployment of Rascal in the various scenes was very artful, from the right-behind-him point-of-view shot when he opens the door, to the part when Rascal’s fishing line catches . . . a whale?!? . . . And I loved the ending of this movie, in which we find out what Rascal REALLY did when he was released . . . Funny, resourceful, and ingenious!”

That’s not the only movie we received from Mr. Johnson’s class. We also received this movie of the short story “The Gingi” from Patricia McKissack’s 1993 Honor Book The Dark-Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural, in which the cursed statue that a mother brings home to her house is here replaced by a McDonald’s Happy Meal:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “Funny, surprising, and refreshingly irreverent! From the start, the title cards and suitably spooky music were effective in setting the proper ghost-story mood . . . I appreciated the slow-burn feeling of this, the way it starts totally normal but then slowly and subtly deepens the spooky atmosphere . . . I laughed out loud with shock when the mother actually exploded!”

Mr. Johnson’s 5th Grade also made this great version of Erin Entrada Kelly’s 2018 Medal Winner Hello, Universe, twisting the ending so that the guinea pig who got thrown in the well exacts some revenge on the bully character:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “This is exactly the kind of twist I love to see in a 90-Second Newbery! This movie tells the story of Hello, Universe accurately and respectfully, carefully introducing the characters and situations with admirable economy and style . . . and then refreshingly throws it all out the window for a satisfying and ridiculous finale! . . . I laughed and gasped with delight as Gulliver grew to huge proportions and then chased the bully. A funny, irreverent adaptation of the book!”

Here’s another inventive twist on a classic book by Mr. Johnson’s 5th Grade: remaking Gary Paulsen’s 1988 Honor Book Hatchet in the style of the video game Fortnite:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “Unique and hilarious . . . The shots were well-framed and the editing was crisp . . . I liked the green-screened chests that keep appearing . . . and how they all seem to have the same thing, a hatchet. Cutting from ‘Seriously, another hatchet?’ to a cave full of hatchets was comic genius . . . Amazing work!”

There’s one more movie from Mr. Johnson’s 5th Grade that I’d like to highlight, and it’s of Joan W. Blos’ 1980 Medal Winner A Gathering of Days: A New England Girl’s Journal, 1830-1832:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “I appreciated the meticulous attention to detail: the accurate period costumes, the resourceful use of green screen, the extensive use of outdoors locations, and the emotionally appropriate music that seems to sync up to the actions onscreen. There was even a fun bird puppet! . . . My favorite parts were the irreverent touches, like one character anachronistically saying ‘Oh sure whatevsies,’ or the wedding kiss being interrupted by the director storming on set and bellowing, ‘Cut! Guys, remember we’ve gotta keep this PG!'”

Thanks for all those great movies, Mr. Johnson’s 5th Grade from the Grant School For Expressive Arts!

Let’s look at some other movies from Tacoma that we featured at the screening. For instance, there was this ambitious and exciting version of Robin McKinley’s 1985 Medal Winner The Hero and the Crown by Martin Anderson, Aunya Crow, Quinn Sukys, Vivian Sukys, Olivier Bonjour, and Josiah Anderson:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “The performances were suitably outsized and heroic, and yet grounded in authentic emotion. The first shot, of a grand castle-like structure, puts the viewer in the high fantasy mood, though the next scene takes care to bring the action down to earth by having Galanna rant against our hero Aerin. After Aerin gets her mission, I was amused at how she ‘rides her horse’ (a stop-motion sequence with a toy rocking horse, very resourceful!) . . . Great background music throughout, and the swordfight against Agsded was very well handled! It feels genuinely triumphant when Aerin thrusts the crown into the air, and the head of the dragon as well! ”

The 4th and 5th Grade Students from Rainier Elementary School at the Joint Base Lewis-McChord, WA did this fun adaptation of Linda Sue Park’s 2002 Medal Winner A Single Shard:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “What a creative and resourceful reimagining of the story! I loved the stroke of brilliance of making Min a baker instead of a potter . . . and so his masterpieces aren’t vases, but cakes! I loved all the performances: the snarky, cantankerous baker Min, the supplicating and constantly bowing Tree-Ear, the sassy wife (‘Well, we’re not just going to leave her in the streets!’). Excellent cinematography and crisp editing whipped this movie along efficiently and with style.”

Browns Point Elementary did this great version of Kimberly Brubaker Bradley’s 2016 Honor Book The War That Saved My Life, in which the students provided all the music themselves:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “Wow! The piano playing in this movie really made it stand out! I thought it was brilliant to have the music change throughout, to match the emotion and energy of each scene. The green screen and costumes were resourceful and made the world convincing. The acting was especially engaging and believable: ‘Mam’ was satisfyingly boo-hiss mean and cruel, Ada was tragically put-upon and earnest and finally triumphant, brother Jamie was by turns defiant and authentically childish, and Susan’s arc from resisting kids to welcoming them was well-played.”

Every year the Seabury School in Tacoma submits a lot of great movies, so many that unfortunately we can’t possibly feature them all at the screening. Let’s look at two that we were able to feature this year, for instance Victoria Maeng and friends’ adaptation of Richard and Florence Atwater’s 1939 Honor Book Mr. Popper’s Penguins (which dwells amusingly on the Poppers’ dysfunctional marriage):

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “I loved this bonkers, high-energy, irreverent take on the story! I enjoyed how Mr. Popper is here played as a naive layabout, and his wife Mrs. Popper is an over-the-top exasperated housewife, clunking around with her big stick and nagging Mr. Popper and getting frustrated with his Antarctic obsessions. It was especially funny when she snatched his newspaper, rolling it up and began battering him with it, calling him ‘a lazy one’ . . . the “penguins” obviously had a lot of fun rolling around in it! Great acting from everyone, and it told the story quickly and with enthusiasm and ingenuity!”

Also from Seabury School, we received this version of Lois Lowry’s 1994 Medal Winner The Giver from Ishaan K. and friends:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “This was a low-key but artfully effective adaptation. I like how it started with scenes that could’ve easily been from our own world (realistic and grounded scenes of hanging out with one’s family, walking to school with a friend), and then subtly beginning to introduce the dystopian aspects of the world of the story . . . It was a fun choice to have the camera zoom dramatically into Jonas’ face when he is shocked at the rule ‘You May Lie’ or when he discovers the truth about ‘release’ . . . A fun, accurate sprint through the book!”

Along with Victoria’s and Ishaan’s movies, we received a lot of other great movies from Seabury School this year. You can see them all here.

We also received a batch of good movies from Summit Trail Middle School in Maple Valley, WA, including this movie of Katherine Paterson’s 1978 Medal Winner A Bridge to Terabithia by Emma, Peyton, Josh, Jessica, and David:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “It was a smart idea to start with the footrace that sparks Leslie and Jesse’s friendship. The scene with Leslie and Jesse and the rope in the woods was well-done, revealing their different characters by their different attitudes towards the rope: I liked how it highlighted Leslie’s daredevil pushiness and Jesse’s more circumspect wariness. And their different outfits — Jesse’s drab, Leslie’s whimsical — also worked well to show their different personalities (‘Don’t let go, and just let it happen!’) . . . Fast, resourcefully shot, and faithful to the book!”

We actually got quite a few movies from Summit Trail Middle School. You can see them all here.

There are a few more movies I want to feature on this post that we showed at the screening. For instance, 7-year-old M. Hanawalt did this delightful puppet show of Patricia MacLachlan’s 1986 Medal Winner Sarah, Plain and Tall:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “Creative use of hand-made puppetry and hand-drawn backgrounds to tell the story! I liked the resourceful and clever use of a paintbrush to portray a broom in the puppet’s hands. The voice acting was engaging and convincing, and Sarah’s paisley dress was quite groovy! The movie sprints through the story entertainingly, and covers a surpsingly large amount of the plot. Good job!”

And finally, we also featured at the screening a movie based on a book that drew from events that happened right in Tacoma, of Katherine Applegate’s 2013 Medal Winner The One and Only Ivan:

As the judges wrote in the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “I loved that this movie used such a wonderfully elaborate, real-looking gorilla costume for Ivan (and good performance too, beating his chest and trying to peel the banana)! There was also a good use of stock photos and archival newspapers to tell Tacoma’s story of Ivan. The scenes with Ivan being fed or listening to his human supervisors were well-shot and fun to watch. The informative voiceover kept the story on track and clear. I especially liked the ‘feeding’ scene of Ivan!”

And that was the 2019 Tacoma 90-Second Newbery Film Festival! Thanks again to Sara Sunshine Holloway and everyone at the Tacoma Public Library and the good people at the Blue Mouse theatre, as well as my co-host Doug Mackey, tech wizards John Hargis and Isaac, and of course all the young filmmakers and their teachers and parents and facilitators who helped this whole thing to come together. I always have a great time in Tacoma! Here’s the final montage of all the movies, below. And please consider donating to keep us going!

Look at all those young filmmakers! And, uh, the two strange men murdering each other in their midst! This was the scene on Sunday, March 17, just after we did the Rochester, New York screening of the 90-Second Newbery Film Festival at the Rochester Museum and Science Center.

Thanks to the amazing work of Deb Ross and Carol White Llewelyn, the film festival has really flourished in Rochester! They put together the local network it takes to pull off an event like this: partners at the Rochester Museum and Science Center, KidsOutAndAbout.com, the George Eastman Museum, and Writers & Books, along with sponsors Rochester Community TV (RCTV), Delta Airlines, the Friends & Foundation of the Rochester Public Library, RIT Magic Spell Studio, and Cheshire AV. The show is always free to enter and to attend, but only because of their generous support, and yours. Please consider donating to keep us going next year, too!

I was supremely honored to get the legendary children’s author Bruce Coville as my co-host. He was funny, kind, and a real pro . . . it was great to hang out with him. Check out the video below of the opening skit, in which Bruce and I are confronted by the HIGH SUPREME NEWBERY COUNCIL of Newbery winners Kate DiCamillo, Jacqueline Woodson, E.B. White, and . . . Meindert Dejong? What, you’ve never heard of the real-life winningest Newbery author ever, Meindert Dejong? Watch the video to see how he and the rest of the HIGH SUPREME NEWBERY COUNCIL attempt to shut down our film festival, only to be thwarted with our rousing parody version of “One Day More” from Les Miserables. Special thanks to Parker for playing the Sergeant-At-Arms of the High Supreme Newbery Council!

I always have a great time in Rochester. I’m grateful to stay with my friends Arthur and Amy, whom I met through Rochester’s famous Teen Book Festival. In this trip, I joined Amy’s team of librarians for an after-hours trivia contest, emceed by my co-host from the Rochester 90-Second Newbery last year, Matt Krueger. Another night we all went bowling with Matt’s husband Jonathan. And I did virtual reality in Arthur and Amy’s basement. And I did presentations at Johanna Perrin Middle School and Leo Bernabi Elementary. And many more dinners and meetings with friends that I only get to see once a year or so, but I’m so glad when I do. A whirlwind weekend! (And our film festival as even featured on the local Rochester TV news!)

So what movies did we feature from Rochester this year? RCTV Writers & Books Summer 2018 Camp created this movie of E.L. Konigsburg’s 1968 Medal Winner From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, in the style of a black-and-white silent movie:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “What a great-looking black-and-white silent movie! . . . I was impressed how judiciously and effectively you interspersed the intertitles and the action to tell the story mostly visually and wordlessly . . . Great acting all throughout, especially the waggle in Claudia’s eyebrows when she says ‘You wanna run away?’ . . . Great work overall!”

Also from RCTV Writers & Books Summer 2018 Camp, we received this inventive adaptation of Kate DiCamillo’s 2001 Honor Book Because of Winn-Dixie, in which Winn-Dixie is advertised as though she’s a kind of medicine, complete with disclaimers:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “This was hilarious! I love the idea of pitching Winn-Dixie as a kind of cure-all medicine, using the format of a pharmaceutical commercial, complete with testimonials and disclaimers . . . the two best parts were at the end: the fast-talking disclaimer at the end as the camera slowly zoomed in on Winn-Dixie’s face (an almost nightmarish effect!) and the joyful, ludicrous ‘That’s my dog!’ tag at the end. So much fun, a joy to watch!”

The third and final movie that RCTV Writers & Books Summer 2018 Camp created was of Christopher Paul Curtis’ 1996 Honor Book The Watsons Go to Birmingham: 1963, with a weird twist: the old characters from the book are young in this movie, and the young characters are old:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here), “This age-swap idea really refreshed the narrative and gave this movie its juice . . . This movie really ‘committed to the bit’ throughout—for instance, the bullies threatening to steal one’s dentures, or the ‘Help! I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!’ reference in the whirlpool . . . This was a really good movie, with a clever premise that was admirably executed.”

Do you know Eian Sinclair? You should! And if you don’t, you soon will! He’s the young Rochester genius who has been making great 90-Second Newbery movies for years. Every year Eian Sinclair creates a masterpiece, and this year’s no exception. Here’s his animated take on William Steig’s 1983 Honor Book Doctor DeSoto:

As the judges said (full review here), “I was blown away by the painstakingly elaborate illustrations throughout . . . The fox is particularly impressively animated, with so many fun-to-watch sequences, like when he’s scooting on his knees to beg to Dr. DeSoto, or licking his chops in anticipation of a meal, or when his jaw trembles when he can’t open his mouth. The script is tight and tells the story accurately and wittily: ‘I’ve been outfoxed by a mouse!’ I was also impressed by how all of the original music was composed and played by Eian.”

As it happens, Eian drew a caricature of me, which I featured at the screening. What do you think? Pretty good likeness?

I also got a wonderful movie of Kate DiCamillo’s 2001 Honor Book Because of Winn-Dixie from Leo Bernabi Elementary School (which I visited and did a presentation in the days leading up to the screening!):

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here): “This movie was fantastic! I like how this movie resourcefully deployed a convincing-looking stuffed dog to portray Winn-Dixie . . . There was realistic and grounded acting from everyone (and I was amused at how Miss Franny yelped ‘Ah! A bear!’ and tumbled off her chair, and just as swiftly recovered). The part with Gloria Dump portrayed as the Wicked Witch of the West was adorable . . . Great cinematography and editing throughout, crisply moving from scene to scene and keeping the story clear at every moment. And I loved how it ended with everyone singing ‘Who Let the Dogs Out’!”

When I visited Leo Bernabi Elementary, the students of Canal View Elementary also showed up for the presentation. Canal View submitted FOUR great movies, all of which we featured at the screening. First there was this movie of Kate Dicamillo’s 2014 Medal Winner Flora & Ulysses by Sean, Jackson, Ray, and Liam:

As the judges said (full review here): “It was fun how the movie kicked off with a portentuous voice intoning, ‘IT ALL STARTED WITH A VACUUM’ while our opening shot focuses on the fateful vacuum in question. I like how you used fast-forward to simulate the vacuum romping out of control, and the use of dramatic music during Flora’s CPR on Ulysses was an inspired touch. The script was fast and funny, capturing the spirit of the book . . . The whole thing was quick and fun to watch!”

Canal View Elementary also submitted this movie of Katherine Paterson’s 1978 Medal Winner Bridge to Terabithia by Addison, Leah, Mya, Bella, and Rachael:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here): “Fast, resourceful, and true to the book! It was a clever idea to start with Jesse’s voiceover thoughts, putting us right in the hero’s head and letting us know his goals and personality as he practices running in the morning. The introduction of the character of Leslie was handled swiftly and clearly, right after showing her beating everyone else at the race . . . I liked how the phone call was represented with a split screen, and I was amused how Jesse’s mom’s only reaction to his question about going to Washington was an inarticulate grunt. The editing throughout was admirably fast: going from phone call, to museum, to ‘Leslie’s dead,’ to her funeral in about 5 seconds!”

Kristian, Aaron, Bella, Kya, Brynn, Alexis, Megan, Morrigan, Ella, and Shannon of Canal View Elementary made this movie of Gary Paulsen’s 1988 Honor Book Hatchet:

As the judges said on the 90-Second Newbery website (full review here): “This was super entertaining, fast, and surprisingly comprehensive! The voiceovers were a good way to set up the story and keep it on track, since so much of Brian’s journey is spent alone with nobody to speak to . . . Crisp, rapid-fire editing hurtles us through the story at a record pace—I was very impressed at how lean this movie is, proceeding from Brian crawling out of the lake, to building the shelter, to all his other challenges in double-quick time. Resourceful use of a stuffed bear in the foreground to make it look like a larger bear, and the sudden zoom on Brian’s face was classic.”

The last movie from Canal View Elementary is also Hatchet, and it’s by Molly, Lylah, Mikayla, Alyvia, Kayla, Emmaline:

As the judges said (full review here), “This was a lot of fun to watch, and it was carried by a fantastic acting performance of ‘Brian’! It was a great idea to start with the scene of Brian’s mom giving the sullen, sulky Brian the hatchet, with a voiceover giving us access to his inner thoughts (‘I don’t want a stupid hatchet!’) while he outwardly accepts it with a ‘thanks.’ . . . My favorite green screen moment is when the moose comes after Brian! The flashbacks to Brian’s mom were well-handled, and gave extra depth to the survival story . . . I like how it ends with the pilot’s body getting dragged out of the water. This was resourceful, funny, convincing, accurate, and unique!”

And that was the Rochester 2019 90-Second Newbery Film Festival! Thanks again to everyone who came together to make this happen! And if you like what we do, please donate to the film festival! The show is always free, but that means we rely on your generosity to keep going.